Despite his many film and TV roles, (including civil servant Sir Frederick Stewart in Yes, Minister), it was only during the 1990s when he joined the cast of Coronation Street as the bellicose but romantic butcherFred Elliott that he became a household name. He made his first appearance on the show in 1994 and his character quickly became popular with viewers.

On 1 December 2000, Savident was stabbed in the neck by Michael Smith who claimed he was acting in self-defence. Savident said at the time "I suddenly felt somebody come up behind me and whizz me round so I was face down on the bed and then I felt a prick on my throat".[1] Savident had met Smith in a gay bar. They then went to Savident's home apparently to discuss the theatre which Smith claimed was a euphemism for sex. The next week on Coronation Street the large sticking plaster on his character's neck was explained as a "butchering accident"[citation needed].

In December 2005, Savident announced that he was to leave the Coronation Street citing (undisclosed) "personal reasons" for his decision. His character died of a heart attack nine months later. He later revealed that he had retired from the show "because he wanted to spend more time with his family in Hertfordshire".[2]

Since leaving, he has been critical of the way the series is produced in a number of articles and television interviews, claiming that the programme is amongst other things "on too frequently" and "badly lit".